Delve into the intricacies of Photoshop through this comprehensive tutorial, covering topics such as Spot Healing Brush and Content-Aware Fill, to equip you with the skills necessary for high-quality image retouching.
This exercise is excerpted from Noble Desktop’s Adobe Photoshop training materials and is compatible with Photoshop updates through 2023. To learn current skills in Photoshop with hands-on training, check out our Photoshop Bootcamp, Graphic Design Certificate, and graphic design classes in-person and live online.
Note: These materials are provided to give prospective students a sense of how we structure our class exercises and supplementary materials. During the course, you will get access to the accompanying class files, live instructor demonstrations, and hands-on instruction.
Topics covered in this Photoshop tutorial:
Spot Healing Brush, Content-Aware Fill
Exercise Preview
Photo by Vladimir Kudinov
Exercise Overview
In this exercise, you’ll removing undesired elements (a common retouching task).
In Photoshop, go to File > Open.
Navigate to Desktop > Class Files > Photoshop Class and double–click on 1B Deer.jpg to open it.
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As shown below, in the Layers panel, click and drag the Background layer down to the New layer button
at the bottom right. This creates a duplicate layer that we can edit without changing the original image.
The Spot Healing Brush
We want to remove the bright spots in dark background because they are distracting. Let’s start with the light blobs on top left near the tree.
- Choose View > 100%.
Hold your Spacebar (the get the Hand tool) and drag anywhere on the image to scroll up to the top left of the photo (where the light blobs are).
- In the Tools panel (the toolbox on the left side of the Photoshop window) choose the Spot Healing Brush tool
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In the Options bar at the top of the screen open the brush options as shown below:
- Set Size to 100 px.
- Set Hardness to 100% (we’re choosing a hard edged brush this time).
- Hit Return (Mac) or Enter (Windows) to close the brush picker.
- This tool automatically figures out what to put into the retouched area. Drag over the light area so it’s covered completely in the dark highlight. After you’ve covered the entire area you want to fix, release and you’ll see the result, which should look pretty good!
- Hold the Spacebar and drag anywhere on the image to scroll down to the base of the tree.
At the base of the tree (near the middle of the image) is a light tan blob which is probably an out of focus lead. Try using this Spot Healing Brush
to remove that.
Content-Aware Fill
Sometimes it’s easier to select an area that you want to “heal”, rather than paint over it. In that case we can use a content-aware fill which will act similarly to the spot healing brush, with Photoshop figuring out what to put into the selected area.
- Hold the Spacebar and drag anywhere on the image to scroll up so you can see the area above the deer.
- In the Tools panel, click on the Lasso tool
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Drag a selection area around the larger light blob above the deer, being sure to get all the light area and a little into the dark area of the surrounding background.
If you don’t like the selection you made, choose Select > Deselect and try again.
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Choose Edit > Fill. (There’s also an Edit > Content-Aware Fill but that’s for more complex needs.)
- Set Contents to Content-Aware.
- Click OK.
- Choose Select > Deselect so you can better see the final result.
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The result should look pretty good!
If you don’t like what Photoshop filled the area with, you could undo the deselect, and fill it again. Photoshop will give you a slightly different result.
Congratulations—you’ve completed your first retouching job!
Saving the File
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When you’re satisfied with the results, do a File > Save As.
- If you see a window for Save to Creative Cloud, click On your computer.
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Set the following options:
- Set Format (Mac) or Save as type (Windows) to Photoshop.
- If you’re not already in the Photoshop Class folder, navigate into it.
- Name it yourname-deer.psd and hit Save.
- If you see a Maximize Compatibility message, keep Maximize Compatibility checked on, check on Don’t show again, and click OK.
NOTE: We often start with JPEGs because it’s a common format for digital cameras, but you’ll want to save your retouched image as a Photoshop Document (.psd) to ensure it remains editabile with layers. Photoshop files also maintain an image’s quality, whereas JPEG compression reduces image quality to reduce the file size.
To Maximize or Not to Maximize?
When saving a Photoshop file (.psd) you may see a dialog with an option to Maximize Compatibility. We recommend keeping Maximize Compatibility turned on, so feel free to check on Don’t show again so you won’t be nagged by this option every time you save. If you want to know what this option does, read the following comparison.
Maximize Compatibility ON
- The document will be more compatible with older versions of Photoshop.
- You should maximize compatibility if working with Adobe InDesign.
- The file size may be larger.
Maximize Compatibility OFF
- The document won’t be as compatible with older versions of Photoshop.
- The file size may be smaller.
Optional Bonus (If You Get Done Early)
- In the Photoshop Class folder open 1B Surfer.jpg.
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Try using the techniques you learned to remove the surfer.
TIP: When using the Spot Healing Brush or Content-Aware Fill, try to remove the unwanted element all at once, rather than in pieces for the best result.